Transformation Story

"I’d been using since I was 15 years old, and this is the longest I’ve ever been sober in my life. I got clean once before, but it was only for 3 years before I relapsed. Being able to double that and celebrate 6 years sober this year has meant a lot." Read More

Frequently Asked Questions

GENERAL INFORMATION

What does Homeboy Industries do?We help formerly gang involved and the previously incarcerated, by offering hope, training and job skills. Our goal: To help former gang members redirect their lives and become contributing members of their families and our community. Homeboy Industries is the largest and most successful gang intervention, rehab, and reentry program in the world and has become a model for other organizations and cities.

How long has Homeboy Industries been around? Homeboy was started by Father Greg Boyle in 1988 to answer the need for employment and educational opportunities among youth. It began in the Dolores Mission Parish in Boyle Heights (East Los Angeles). Today, Homeboy is located in gang-neutral downtown Los Angeles.

What are Homeboy Industries’ Social Enterprises?Social enterprises are businesses that apply commercial strategies to improve the well-being of individuals rather than creating enterprises for profit. Homeboy is an organization with many true social enterprises where trainees are paid to learn job skills and take advantage of comprehensive services. By offering former gang members a place to work, Homeboy provides a place for them to learn soft skills, like administration and customer service, and also vocational skills from solar panel installation to pastry baking or catering. These jobs in Homeboy’s social enterprises, often the first “legit” employment our clients have ever held, give our clients confidence and self-esteem while enabling them to provide for their families.

The jobs our clients have through our social enterprises offer them alternatives to re-incarceration or a return to their former gang lives.

All of Homeboy’s services, offered free of charge, are designed to equip our clients to successfully turn their lives around. Participants in the 18-month program are offered case management and comprehensive wrap-around services while at Homeboy. All of our services (with the exception of case management and individual therapy) are free and open to community clients as well.

How does someone apply for help at Homeboy Industries?Each individual seeking support has to come to our headquarters and walk in the front door. We aim to hire those with the MOST barriers to employment; youth recently released from juvenile camps and halls, or adults from prison, those with visible tattoos and those who are trying to leave their gang. There is a process to joining our program that can take several visits, but the first step is coming into our headquarters so we can meet you!

Why do people join gangs?There is no one reason a young person joins a gang. Our founder and Executive Director, Fr. Greg Boyle, often says that he’s “never met a hopeful kid that joined a gang.”

Our clients come from diverse backgrounds, but the majority have experienced serious trauma of some kind, whether it be abandonment as a child, sexual or physical abuse, a history of family violence and drug involvement, and so on. However, it is also possible for someone who has not experienced any notable degree of these circumstances to join a gang; sometimes the larger environment you are raised in is simply difficult to avoid. As for how to prevent children from joining gangs, this is a question that researchers, nonprofits, schools and government programs spend huge amounts of time and resources trying to answer. In short, the cycle of gang violence has to be approached at every level; prevention and intervention. Homeboy Industries falls into the “intervention” category, as we work with those who have already joined gangs and help them to become contributing members of our community and raise their children so that they will not perpetuate the cycle. However, we recognize how vastly important prevention is as well; anything from early childhood education, to nutrition programs in schools, to mental health services in low-income communities, contributes to reducing the presence of gangs in our communities.

Is Homeboy Industries a faith-based organization?Homeboy began as a grassroots movement started by Jesuit priest Father Greg Boyle (our Executive Director today) in the Dolores Mission Parish, and is a 501(c)3 nonprofit, a Community Based Organization (CBO). While many of the things we work to change at Homeboy are in line with the Jesuit practice of social justice, we are not affiliated with any particular religion. We are so grateful to have friends, supporters, and clients from incredibly diverse faiths and spiritual practices.

ABOUT EMPLOYMENT SERVICES

Does Homeboy Industries offer outside job placement?Homeboy Industries offers employment services to community clients. We provide assistance with developing job leads and building an individual’s marketing package to include resumes, references, and cover letters. Employment services assists with some transportation needs, offers free professional clothing, identification, certifications, work history documents, and other support services for individuals seeking employment.

How do I enroll in the Employment Services department at Homeboy Industries?Clients interested in enrolling with the Employment Services department are required to attend an Information Session. These sessions are held every Monday and Friday at 11 a.m. After attending the Information Session, each client is then required to complete a series of three classes providing information about job searching, interviewing, and computer literacy. When a client has successfully completed these three classes, they are assigned to work directly with an Employment Counselor who will meet with them one-on-one to assist the client in their search for employment.

Please contact the Employment Services Department at Homeboy Industries to learn more about their services and how they can assist in developing employment opportunities

HOMEBOY RECYCLING

Homeboy Recycling is the newest venture at Homeboy. We have partnered with Isidore Recycling who’s mission has been and still is to make recycling electronics easy, secure and accessible, while creating employment opportunities for people who have successfully exited California’s correctional system.

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Transformation Story

Meet Delia

"Since coming to Homeboy Industries, I’ve graduated Residential Drug Treatment, obtained housing, become financially independent to support my kids, got a job, and just recently got a car and my driver’s license. This has all taught me a major lesson on patience...things take time."